Just for Tonight
by HelloBeautiful
Summary: When Jude has no place to go, she crashes at Tommy's place for a few days, or so she thinks. Now, it could be much longer. Jommy.
1. Just for Tonight

**Okay! This is one of my first Instant Star fanfic's so please, constructive criticism always helps along with positive reviews! Well, I was thinking about just leaving this as a one-shot but as I started writing it, it really feel like it needs more things to go along with it to really explain the whole story. Tell me what you guys think! Should I leave it as it is, or continue on with it?**

**Also, with every update I have if I continue, I'll post some questions just to get your input on what should happen next in the story! Just for fun!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Instar Star no matter how hard I wish for it. I do not own Jude Harrison or Tommy Quincy nor do I own Alexz Johnson and Tim Rozon... As much as I wish Tim was mine! The story-line is the only thing that would be considered something of my creation.**

"Tommy! Open up!" Jude yelled as she refrained from knocking and began to pound on Tommy's door.

"What, Harrison!? What?" Tommy screamed from inside of his house.

"Quincy, you better let me in or I'm breaking this door down!" she argued back.

"Fine, pushy," he said as he got off of his couch and headed towards the door. Jude was ready to start pounding again when she heard the doorknob click from the inside.

"No thanks, I don't want any cookies," Tommy said sarcastically, pretending to shut the door.

"Tommy!" Jude started to yell.

"Take a joke, Harrison," he said sighing.

"Can I come in?" Jude asked

"Well, I don't really know how to say no…" he replied.

"Funny, you should be a comedian," Jude said, her voice dripping with even more sarcasm than Tommy had used before. She pushed by him and dropped her things onto his couch.

"Going somewhere?" he asked.

"No, I'm just moving in," Jude said simply.

"Seriously, Jude…" Tommy continued.

"Fine, you want the truth? I've been feeling like I don't belong anywhere and that I don't have a home. I don't have a real home. I haven't had one since I was five and I was barley even able to understand what home was. Sadie and I have been going at this tough with my dad, but I need a change. I need a home. So, I was thinking that if you'd let me, I could crash here for a couple of days while I look for an apartment. Is it okay with you?" Jude asked.

"Again, I can't say no so --- "

"Tommy! I'm being totally honest with you here!" Jude shrieked.

"I don't know if it's such a good idea, Jude," Tommy said, starting to feel uncertain about her plan.

"Oh, come on! Who's going to tell Darius Tommy, huh?" she asked, "Just let me stay here a couple of days so I can figure out where I'm supposed to go."

"What's wrong with your rehearsal space? It's got a couch," he said.

"Too easy. They'll find me in no time," Jude said looking around inside Tommy's house. "Trust me, I've already considered every possible option but this is the only place I can actually stay hidden for a few days."

"You going incognito on us Superstar?" Tommy asked playfully.

"Something like that," she replied, "Can I stay here or what?"

"Yes, Jude. It's fine if you stay with me for a few days but only a few," Tommy said.

"You won't even know I'm here," Jude stated.

"Well, that's going to be hard," Tommy said smiling. Jude was being sneaky because he never noticed the pillow that was rocketing towards him until it had hit him dead in the face.

"Oh, you're going to get it now," Tommy said smirking with mock hurt, while he picked up the pillow that Jude had thrown at him.

"No! Come on Tommy I just got here!" Jude protested laughing when Tommy came forward with his pillow. Before he could strike her, she leaped off of the couch and ran into his bedroom, grabbing as many pillows as she could. Well, at least she thought it was his bedroom. She'd only been there once and that was because Sadie had asked her to stop by to pick up something of her's from after the breakup.

Tommy followed her lead and ran to the guest rooms to grab as many pillows as his arms could hold. He flung them down on the ground and had strategically started to make a fort at the end of the biggest hallway inside of his house while Jude built what resembled a military base.

Jude threw the first pillow and that started the war. Many of Tommy's pillows were smaller, making them easier to throw but Jude's were big so there was a one in ten chance that she would ever miss.

Suddenly, Jude reached for a pillow but none were left. She panicked.

"Freeze! I'm out of ammo!" she shouted at Tommy. She quickly leapt out of the inside of her military base but Tommy was quicker.

"No you don't!" he yelled, chasing after her. She tried to get away when she saw Tommy headed straight for her. She ducked down under the counter top. That was a bad idea. She looked up a couple minutes later to find him gone. Hiding from her. Everything was silent and he feeling of anticipation was slowly getting to her. She looked to her left and to her right but no one was there. She moved in such a slow manor that she would have resembled a sloth at that moment but that was the last thing on her mind. She crept around the kitchen to find an empty room.

Now she was stuck in Tommy Quincy's house about to be attacked at any moment.

Slowly she crept, keeping her eyes as open as she could, looking for any sign of movement.

None.

Suddenly, she turned the corner and was swept off her feet the second she could process what was happening to her. She screamed as loud as she could while she was being picked up and taken over to Tommy's bedroom.

"Put me down!" Jude protested.

"Fine," Tommy said, laying her down.

Jude was expecting to have her back collide with hard flooring or tile but, her back was met with a soft comforter from the top of his bed. Tommy plopped next to her and they both lay there, breathing heavily and about ready to pass out from all of the excitement.

"That was fun," Jude said, laughing.

"I feel like I'm a five year old again," Tommy said, trying to catch his breath and laugh at the same time.

"Glad to know it, Grandpa," she retorted.

Tommy laughed and turned his head so he faced her. He looked at her for a moment until he heard her stomach growl almost simultaneously with his.

"I'm hungry," Jude stated.

"Let's get something to eat," he said, getting to his feet and helping Jude off the bed.

They walked into the kitchen and Jude sat down at one of the barstools that were centered around the stove and sink area while Tommy looked through his pantry.

"I don't think I have anything that doesn't require baking," he said, in awe of his own pantry.

"How does that happen?" Jude asked, "Don't you eat at all?"

"Yea, but I normally eat at the studio or out to eat on days like this," he replied.

"Well, then we better get started making something," Jude said, getting off her place on the barstool, over to the pantry where Tommy was standing.

"You mean we cook together?" Tommy asked.

"Yea, it can't be that hard. I've watched Sadie make me things all the time," Jude replied. "Now, get the flour, salt, eggs, milk, vegetables, and things like that while I start getting everything ready."

"Are you sure we need all that?" Tommy asked.

"I hope so," she said.

Jude got out two bowls and spoons to mix things with along with some cool kitchen gadgets she found in some of the drawers. Tommy had returned with all of the baking ingredients. They had started to get things out of the boxes and bins, but Tommy accidentally let the flour bin slip out of his hand and crash on the floor, making it splatter all over the tile and their clothes. Jude started to laugh hysterically while Tommy was cleaning up the floor, frustrated.

He heard Jude laughing and looked up at her with flour covered hands. The sight of her laughing and all of the flour around him made him laugh a little too so he picked up some flour and rubbed his fingers in it. He then pulled Jude closer to him and tapped the tip of her nose with his flour-covered thumb. He took his other two fingers and made battle-lines like a football player has under her eyes. He laughed a little but still kept Jude's face gently in his hands. They just looked at each other, smiling slightly as their faces inched closer.

Without knowing, they had left the pot that they had dumped random stuff in, sit on the stove for a little too long causing it to boil over and break the tension between them. Jude jumped up and turned the stove down a little. Tommy cleaned up the flour while Jude cleaned up the mess the pot had made. They sat in uncomfortable silence for a while just cleaning and minding their own business until the over beeped.

Jude took their creation out of the oven and placed it onto two plates, allowing it to cool first.

"Here it goes," Jude said, while taking a bite of her food. Tommy did the same but when they finally got the chance to taste it, the both spit it out immediately.

"You know what, I'll order us some pizza," Tommy said laughing.

"Sounds like a plan," Jude replied. "Hey, how about I order the pizza while you go ahead and take a shower. I'll get this cleaned up and we can have some pizza when you're done."

"Jude, it's okay, I'll help" Tommy said, "You don't have to do this."

"But I want to. I just want to say thanks for letting me stay here for a while. It's the least I can do," Jude explained.

"Wow, I'd never thought in a million years that the actual Jude Harrison would clean my kitchen," he said smirking in mock awe.

"I never thought in a millions years that you would fall for that!" Jude said excitedly laughing.

"Oh, no, you aren't making me clean all this up by myself," Tommy said.

"Ha! Twice! Man Quincy, you sure are gullible," Jude said, calming herself. "Don't worry, I'm going to clean it. Go ahead and get in the shower. But watch out, I think when you use the dishwasher and sink at the same time, it turns the shower water icy."

"What?" Tommy asked angrily.

"Three times!!!" Jude said, about rolling on the floor laughing so hard. "Oh my god, that's like a new record or something! 'Jude Harrison, fooled Quincy Jones three times in two minutes!' What a story!" Jude continued in a serious, reporter style way.

"Yeah, whatever Harrison. You should be thankful that I'm actually going to leave you hot water," Tommy said smirking. "But, since you are cleaning up, when you're done, you can get in the shower down the hall. It will be warm water. Trust me."

"Alright thanks Tommy," Jude said.

She finished cleaning up not long after he'd left so she got in the shower and after she was done, she called for pizza. Tommy had come out with we hair, as did she but she had to borrow one of his shirts because her clothes had gotten dirty from the flour and the bathroom floor.

She came down his hallway in just a towel but it wasn't that short of a towel. She was covered up from her chest down to her knees so that meant, everything else was for the mind to imagine. She got one of his black shirts, put it on, and answered the door for the pizza guy.

After a long day, they sat eating together in front of the TV watching the movie The Hills Have Eyes. Jude had already seen it but was still scared and Tommy was practically cracking up the entire time thinking the main guy looked weird.

Finally when the movie ended, it was midnight so they thought that they should be heading off to bed. Tommy told her that she could stay in his guest room or even stay in his room on the couch in there but Jude wanted to remain in front of the TV on the couch in his living room. He gave her a blanket a pillows and gave her the remote to the television and slowly got up.

"Well, I'm going to bed now and I'll see you in the morning," he told her and then headed off in the direction of his bedroom leaving Jude to sit on his couch and watch him leave.

"Forgot something," she said to his retreating back. He turned around slyly to look at her.

"And what is that?" he asked while Jude got herself off of the couch and wrapped her arms around him. He was shocked at first but then slowly relaxed and put his arms gently around her back and lowered them to her waist after a while. Jude pulled back and leaned her forehead on Tommy's smiling.

"Good night, Tommy," she said. She turned back towards the couch, and laid down under a red blanket.

That night he couldn't sleep a wink. Every time he tried, he remembered that Jude Harrison was sleeping on his couch. He smiled to himself when she realized that the only time she was quiet or still was when she was sleeping. You couldn't think about Jude, or her personality, without smiling.

Tommy could hear a muffled sound coming from the living room where Jude was so, he got up and decided to check it out. When he walked into the room, he saw Jude sitting on the couch with the television remote in her hands and the blanket tucked around her. Light was shining off of the TV in front of her and it glowed across her skin. Trails of her silent tears were glistening because the only light in the room was the television. She was crying, but not for the reasons he was thinking. He paid more attention to her features and watched as her expression changed from highly concentrated to soft, and caring. She was watching the TV so intently that she didn't see him come in, nor did she notice that the television volume was turned down so low, that it was barley audible.

The TiVo was working overtime, rewinding and pausing, rewinding and pausing, as it allowed Jude to watch what she loved over and over again. Tommy could hear some of the dialogue and it sounded like two people were dancing to music in the 1950's.

"You know Susie, I'm really glad I had this time with you," said one of the characters.

"Yeah Greg, me too," said another character.

"I haven't said this to anyone, but you're a real swell girl," Greg said, "I'm glad I got to know you."

"Thanks Greg," Susie said smiling.

"I think I'm in love with you, Susie," Greg said, quietly.

"That's all I've ever wanted Greg. For I am just a girl standing in front of a boy, asking him to love me. I never thought that it would happen," Susie said.

"You can be anywhere when your life begins. You meet the right person and anything is possible," Greg said.

They danced and danced until the music grew faint in the backround.

"I'm beginning to think that maybe it's not just how much you love someone. Maybe what matters is who you are when you're with them," Greg said looking Susie in the eyes. "And I love the person who I am when I'm with you."

Tommy smiled. Chick flicks always had the best lines for a guy to say to a girl but some of them were just cheesy.

"Jude," he said quietly, trying not to scare her. He leaned against the doorframe that looked into the room. "Are you okay?"

"Tommy, I'm sorry!" she said surprised. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"Don't worry about it," he said, "I couldn't sleep anyways."

"Come sit," Jude said, patting the spot next to her on the couch where he willingly sat. After he sat, Jude pulled some of the blanket out from under her and placed it gently over Tommy, so they shared the blanket. He watched her for a moment as she looked at the TV screen with fresh tears in her eyes threatening to fall.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, concerned.

"No reason, I was just watching a movie," she said honestly. "It's in black and white, but it's my favorite movie. It gets to me every time I watch it. I probably have seen this a million times and somehow I always cry."

They sat in silence for a few minutes just watching the movie until Tommy spoke again.

"What's it about?" he questioned.

"Well, it's about a guy and a girl who love each other, but they can't be together," Jude said, her eyes focusing back on the TV to let a few more tears fall.

"Sounds familiar," Tommy said looking at Jude, who smiled back. "How does it end?"

"Well," Jude began, catching onto his game, "The boy realizes he was silly to make the girl wait all that time when he could have had her anytime he wanted. He didn't see that even though he dated other girls, or did anything not so smart, she still loved him. So, in the end, the boy finally knows what he truly wanted in his heart even though he was questioning it before. She was always there for him and he was stupid not to realize it. All the girl wanted was to be loved by him."

Tommy felt like he had all of the wind knocked out of him right there on the spot. He knew Jude had cared about him, but he couldn't make himself see that she was the one he was in love with.

"Sounds like a good movie," he said as he inched his face closer to hers, staring directly into her eyes.

"Yeah," Jude said half-heartedly. She looked at Tommy, and then at his lips, waiting and somehow knowing that something was about to happen.

They could barley hear the faint sound of the television in front of them saying one of it's famous lines that Jude loved so much.

_"I love that you get cold when it's seventy degrees out. I love how you sing to me like no one is around but us. Your voice is an angel's. I love how I go crazy thinking about how great you make me feel during the day and that I never want to leave you. I love that after I spend a day with you I can still smell your perfume on my clothes, and I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. I love the way you smile because it warms my heart. I love everything about you."_

Tommy finally closed the remaining gap between them and slowly brushed his lips against hers before he pressed them into hers. Jude slowly started to kiss back softly and gently. Jude felt Tommy trace the outline of her bottom lip with his tongue as she parted her lips slightly allowing him to enter her mouth. They explored every crack and crevice of each other's mouth until Tommy pulled away allowing Jude to place a few more pecks on his lips. She leaned her head on his shoulder and he began to place feather light kisses on her neck and collarbone. Tommy leaned back, into the couch and took Jude with him. They sat sitting on the couch, holding each other while Jude laid her head on his stomach, focusing back onto the TV.

"So that's it?" Jude asked after a few minutes.

"What?" Tommy questioned.

"No 'You're too young' or, 'We can't be together because I'm your producer.' All those things you used to say to me after we shared something special? You're not going to say any of that?" Jude asked, propping herself up on his chest so she could see him.

"Nope."

"No?"

"Tonight I think I want to forget about all of the things I've done in the past. Just for tonight, okay? I want to think about what's happening right here, right now," Tommy explained.

"Oh, and what is that?" Jude asked.

"Us," Tommy stated simply.

"You know, I'm totally fine with that," Jude said, beginning to doze off. "Quincy?"

"Yeah, Harrison?"

"I'm glad I'm here."

"Me too."

And with that, the two fell asleep, wrapped comfortably in each other's arms.

**So, What'd you think? I've love to hear! **

**For the next chapter: **

**1. Who should wake up first?**

**2. Should they go into the studio or spend time somewhere else?**

**3. Should someone find out where Jude is?**

**4. Did that happen too fast?**

**Just some random questions that I could input into the next chapter...**

**XOXOX**

**Emma**


	2. AUTHOR'S NOTE! :

**Holy crap. Why didn't anyone puch me in the face?**

**I am so embarrassed and sorry that it took me so long to think of anything to write. It was like permanent writers block. I didn't want to let anyone down with the next chapter so I was perfecting it and perfecting it until it wasn't even a story anymore. Hah! So I just recently wrote about 3-4 more chapters that should be coming up really soon. As always, school is getting increasingly difficult and my miterms are next week. I can promise, though, as an early holiday present all 3 of those chapters are going up along with whatever else I can write. If that doesn't get done I'm going to pay someone to smack me in the head and get motivated. Hah! Writing the second and third and fourth chapter is a lot harder than writing the first, let me tell you that.. hah! But I swear, I will try my hardest to not let anyone down!**

Here are some teasers from chapter two that should be coming in the next week or so...

_

* * *

_

_"What, did you start a fight with the chair or something?" he asked._

_"Just because I'm bruised up doesn't mean it was my fault!" she replied._

_"Yeah, because stationary objects really fight hard."_

_

* * *

_

_"You know," he sighed, "it's not my place. Just forget I ever asked it."_

_"No," she mumbled. "I need to tell you what happened. I have to."_

_

* * *

_

_"Man, my mind is like lightning today!" he said, confidently._

_"Yeah," Jude agreed. "One flash and it's gone. Weird..."_


	3. Breakfast At Tommy's

**Okay, well like I promised I have the next couple of chapters coming at y'all full speed. I really hope they're okay. I've tried my hardest to make them better, so I hope you enjoy them! This chapter is pretty uneventful, but then again, it's only the second chapter and I have a lot to lead up to. It's kind of a filler, but what ever. I promise there will be more to come! The next two chapters are really dramatic. I took everyone's opinions into consideration and wrote based off of that. I know many of you said that Tommy should wake up first, but it seemed like Jude was too stubborn to stay sleeping in my story. Hah. **

**Oh, btw, my 'S' key is kind of sticking, so if some words in here don't have an "s", they should. Hah!**

**Well, I hope you enjoy! The next chapters will be coming soon! In the meantime, review, review! What are your holiday plans?**

* * *

Bam!

"Oww!" Jude cried, waking Tommy from his place on the couch. Sun beams shown softly through the curtains of his home and warmed up his skin in the places they grazed.

A pain stricken, fully clothed Jude sat on the ground next to the coffee table nursing a swollen knee as Tommy looked on amused.

"Good morning," he smiled.

Jude's eyes shot to him immediately. First, filled with shock at the sound of his voice and secondly, with frustration.

"No, no!" Jude yelled, "go back to sleep! You can't wake up just yet!"

"What?" Tommy asked.

"Look, you need to shut up and go back to sleep," Jude pleaded. "Just for me, please!"

"Jude, look I'm already--"

"JUST DO IT!" Jude screamed.

"Yes, ma'am!" Tommy replied letting his back fall back in place on the couch. Although his eyes were closed, his other senses were on high alert. He listened as she banged around all throughout the house. Slamming cabinet doors, pots and pans, and drawers.

He sat silent and still everytime she came to check if he was still sleeping. He wasn't sure if she was waiting for him to get up, or checking if he was still down so she could go about her business, but one thing was for sure, he wasn't moving.

"You know," Jude's voice softly came into his mind. "You're a terrible actor."

Tommy peeked at her through one of his eyes, making sure he was stealthy. Sure enough she was leaning against the door frame that Tommy had watched he through the night before. Faking a stretch and a sleepy moan, he began to 'wake up.'

"You can stop pretending," she said. "I know you've been awake. But thank you for trying."

"So, did you tear down my house or something?" he asked, his voice husky from the 'sleep' he had.

"What?" Jude asked back, confused.

"Well," Tommy started, "you were making so much noise I thought for sure one of the walls of my house would be going down by the time you were done."

She glared at him and subconsciously rubbed her arm. A big purplish bruise tarnished her almost perfect skin, stretching just below her wrist all the way to her elbow. At first Tommy was shocked, but then as Jude's line of vision had changed, he smiled.

She had taken her piercing gaze from him to the chair at the front of the room, staring at it, as if to burn it with her laser vision.

"What, did you start a fight with the chair or something?" he asked playfully.

"Just because I'm bruised up doesn't mean it was my fault!" she replied.

"Yeah, because stationary objects really fight hard."

"Oh, good one, Tommy," Jude countered back. "That take you all morning to come up with?"

Tommy smiled. Then slowly his smile vanished.

"Yes."

"Thought so," Jude said with a satisfied grin. "Actually, I was trying to make breakfast. You wanna come check it out?"

"Wow, sure," he replied, taken aback. When they made the food last night, it was terrible, and Jude claimed she had never cooked much before. He made a mental note to take small bites, just in case one of the foods happened to have some weird stuff in it, like a penny or something.

As they walked into the kitchen, the breakfast was laid out perfectly. Pancakes, bacon, eggs, hash browns, everything. Orange juice had been poured into two glasses that sat next to the plates. It all looked so inviting.

"There is no way you made all this," Tommy stated in wonder.

"Who says?" Jude asked.

Tommy took his eyes off the appetizing meal for only two seconds before he saw the clue he had been looking for. Take out boxes from Denny's had been stuffed in the trashcans, however, a corner of the box had been sticking out. He was all too familiar with take-out food.

"Nice try," he commented as he walked toward the trashcan. "But you know, Ms. Buttersworth, the magician always hides their props." Jude's eyes grew wide as he took out the box.

"Fine," she sighed and threw her hands in the air. "You win."

"What exactly is your part in all of this?" he asked.

Jude motioned to the orange juice in the glasses as Tommy took his place at the table.

Tommy took a sip of his orange juice and smiled, "perfect."

* * *

After the two had finished their breakfast, Tommy went back to his room to change as Jude cleaned the dishes.

Slowly staggering out from his bedroom, he stood next to Jude as she dried the plates they had used.

"You wash," Tommy said, "I'll dry."

"Sounds like a plan," Jude agreed and handed him the plate.

"You're going to get your sleeves wet if you keep them like that," Tommy noticed.

"I'll be careful," Jude replied tossing the question away. They sat silently in their own thoughts before Tommy spoke up.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Jude replied. "Go ahead."

"I was just wondering the real reason you wanted to move out," Tommy asked, hesitantly. "You know, out of your house."

Jude was silent. She immediately stopped what she was doing and stared distantly out into the backyard from the window above the sink. The quiet began to make Tommy nervous. What had he said? Was it something bad? Back tracking, he wished he'd never said anything.

"I thought I told you yesterday," she replied softly. "I need a home."

"Yeah, but.." he stopped. He knew there had to be more than that. But he decided that if she wasn't going to answer, he wasn't going to ask.

"You know," he sighed, "it's not my place. Just forget I ever asked it."

"No," she mumbled. "I need to tell you what happened. I have to."

She didn't once take her eyes off of the scenery before her. Images played out like a movie in her spinning head. She wanted to tell Tommy, but she couldn't. Not now.

"Tommy," she began as her voice broke, "I want you to know that I will tell you. I can't tell you now, but I will. So I'm sorry, but I can't say anything. Not yet."

She immediately broke contact with the outside world and began scrubbing vigorously at the dish in her hand. Tommy had stepped into heated territory which he very well knew, and like she mentioned, he was going to drop it until she was ready.

"That reminds me," she started, changing the subject and breaking the ever present silence that had settled between them now and then. "I have to start looking at places. I have so much to do! We need to do some shopping before I leave you here alone again. I don't want you to starve or live off of take-out and McDonald's for the rest of your life. Why don't we finish up and then get headed to the grocery?"

"Sure," Tommy agreed. "That sounds great."

"We have to hurry," she said, glancing at the incoming dark clouds far in the distance. "We have to get there and back before the rain starts."

* * *

The car ride to the grocery was silent, as usual. Jude had suggested they go to a grocery store in the city nearby, so she could still keep hidden, but still keep close to home. They had driven, however, closer to the rain clouds and had little time before the storm would start. While they finished cleaning the dishes, Jude had complied a list of the things they needed which she kept firmly in her hands. She needed to be in charge and Tommy passively agreed.

"Okay, so first we need butter, eggs, and milk," she read off the list, "looks like, isle 4."

Tommy pushed the shopping cart while Jude threw in things off the shelf from every direction. Occasionally, Tommy would mutter, 'yuck' or 'I don't like those' as opposed to the approval he gave when she placed at least ten different bags of chips in the cart. Jude felt strange about shopping with Tommy. The only time she had ever seen him out of the studio was running into him at some parties or rehearsal for their shows. They once grabbed dinner together after the studio late one night, but that was it. Strictly business. That's why she had been so shocked to know that Tommy allowed her to stay with him. He was either desperate for a house guest, or out of his right mind this weekend, but one thing was for sure, she was grateful to him for any reason.

Not to mention the kiss they shared last night. It had been so sweet and tender, testing each others limits. She had felt such emotion from the one kiss, but neither of them had yet to bring it up. She didn't know if she was scared to say anything in case it would have been a spur of the moment thing, but she was sure he felt something too.

She had to admit that he did look like a little puppy dog following her around in the store. He was always the calm, cool, and collected one but when it came to anything about home, he was useless. Jude knew that Tommy never had much of a home, so she was determined to give him some kind of a home before she left. If that meant grocery shopping together, she could handle it.

Together. That's it. She felt strange because they had come here together. Couples shop together. Couples _grocery _shop together. She felt like they were a couple. But they were just friends. Friends who shared passionate kisses from time to time. Neither of them were interested in being a couple at this time.

"Jude, yes or no?" Tommy's impatient voice rang into her mind.

"What?" she asked absentmindedly.

"Should we get two of these soda boxes?"

"Yeah, Tommy, get whatever you want," she replied as she walked further down the isle.

Tommy took note of her behavior and set a mental note to himself to ask her about it when the time was right.

* * *

"Wow, I never thought I'd ever have so much food in one pantry in my life," Tommy stated bewildered.

"Yeah, that's called having a home," Jude commented. "You should try it sometime."

"Let's make something again!" Tommy said excitedly.

"Tommy, after what happened last night and how horrible it turned out," Jude mentioned. "You'll be scraping the crud off of those dishes for weeks."

"Come on, Jude. It'll be fun! This time we'll watch the Food Network," Tommy said, "We've got at least ten more minutes till the Rachel Ray lunch/dinner special is on, we should try it."

"Fine, lets do it."

Jude took the ten minute time lapse to get her things and try and get settled into the guest room for the time being. There was a very large bed in the center of the room pressed up against the back wall. A dresser sat directly across from the bed and above that a flat screen TV had been mounted into the wall. It had a very large closet and bathroom where she put all of her stuff for the night. Jude, however, was barley impressed by the large room and the technology it possessed. On the left side of the room, there was no wall, just windows with shutters that opened to reveal the spacious backyard and scenery it had. She had no idea that Tommy's house had so many trees in the backyard, let alone a pool. The pool had a hot tub, diving board and a beach entry, where she could lay out if she wanted to.

To the left of the pool were swings. It was obviously from the owners before Tommy because the thing looked like it hadn't been used in years. Jude watched the dark clouds roll in, with the rain that threatened to fall. She decided to go and try to swing on the swings before the rain had completely started, so she pushed open her sliding glass door and stepped out. The cool air smelled like rain already and the air was dense. Jude hurried over to the swings so she could at least have a couple of minutes of dryness before it was washed away.

She slowly sat down and began to use her feet to push herself higher and higher off the ground. She couldn't help but smile as she did so. She felt innocent, carefree, and alive. Not broken, hurt, and alone like she has been all this time. For the first time in a while she forgot about the worries of the big world and just focused on getting higher and higher into the air. She started to shiver, the air was getting cold. Slowing down, Jude looked to the window where she saw Tommy look on amused. She smiled at him and arched her finger, telling him to come.

Soon, he apperaed through the back door.

"You didn't tell me you had all this," she yelled to him.

"You never asked," he replied.

"Come swing with me," she said.

"And die?" he questioned, "no thank you."

"What, are you afraid of children's toys of something?" Jude asked.

"Well, seeing you're on a rusty swing set as it is about to storm, lightning is attracted to metal, and those chains haven't been used in years. So right now, yes, I am scared of the swings," Tommy answered. "Man, my mind is like lightning today!" he said confidently.

"Yeah," Jude agreed, "one flash and it's gone. Weird..."

"Funny," Tommy grudgingly replied. "Crap! I came out here to tell you Rachel Ray is on! We're missing it!"

"Well what are we doing out here then?" Jude replied sarcastically. "Let's get to it Betty Crocker!"

As they raced back inside a tiny raindrop bounced off of Jude's skin. She wiped it off fast, however, a little too hard. She winced when she felt she had hit something underneath. She lifted up the hem of her sleeve to reveal many finger sized bruises and cigarette burns covering her arms. Her face grew hot as she looked at them and remembered the remains of a broken bottle that had been in her skin under the neatly wrapped bandages under her shirt. Tears brimmed her eyes as more raindrops began to fall on her.

"Jude!" Tommy called from inside, "Hurry! She's already started!"

Jude blinked back the tears threatening to fall. She had done this so many times it was like second nature to her. She shook her head, mustered up the best smile she could make and headed inside.

* * *

Teasers for the next chapter!

* * *

_Something abnormal and rigid. He softly moved her hair out of the way to take a closer look at what he saw. _

_When it all came into focus, his stomach nearly dropped to the floor as his throat grew thick with a lump that he couldn't make go down. His heart ached._

**

* * *

**

_"Jude, I know it's him! You don't need to protect him!" Tommy yelled._

_"But it's not Tommy! It's not him!" she countered back._

_"He's a sick man, Jude," he replied, disgusted._

* * *

**Okay! **

**Does anyone watch Gossip Girl on here? I pretty much cried on last night's episode when Blair was comforting Chuck. Like no joke, cried. Hah. What did everyone else think?**

**Question time!**

**1. What do you think is going on with Jude?**

**2. Should the storm play a part in this?**

**3. Should Jude be contacted by anyone trying to know where she is yet?**

**Okay, thanks so much!**

xoxox

Emma :)


	4. The Dark Night

**Okay, as you can see, I'm pulling a Gossip Girl and naming my chapters after movies. That reminds me, what are some of your favorite movies and why? I love the Notebook. Classic. Hah. Also, what do you want for the holidays, for whatever holiday you celebrate? I was thinking something along the lines of a new digital photography camera, or the new ipod. Does anyone have it? Is it worth it? Anyways, back to my story. I hope everyone is enjoying it. I'm so glad I'm back into the writing mode. Okay, now this chapter gets intense, but still has yet to go there. Wow, you know the saying, you are your worst critic. Totally. Hah. I didn't really like writing this because Tommy and Jude didn't really banter as much as they normally do. This chapter takes on a more serious tone. I think a lot of you will think you know whats happening and who's causing it, but trust me, you don't. The Dark Night refers to the power outage, not the movie. I also wanted to thank everyone who's been reviewing. I love to read each and everyone of them.**

**Well, I hope everyone enjoys this and if I don't have another chapter up before Christmas, I hope everyone has a great holiday! :)**

* * *

"Jude, come on!" Tommy yelled. "How hard is it to follow directions from a woman who is doing it on screen, practically FOR you?"

"I'm doing the best freaking job I can, Tommy, so shut up!" Jude yelled back, emphasising the last two words the most.

The thunder crashed.

The two were trying to cook a three course meal and roast a turkey at the same time, which, for both rookies proved to be the most frustrating job in the world.

"See, Rachel says you have to 'baste it'," Tommy said.

The thunder crashed again as lightning filled the sky.

"What the hell does that even mean, Tommy?" Jude cried exasperatedly. "Rachel says this, Rachel says that. I don't care what Rachel has to say. Why don't you and Rachel move off to Cookin' Island and cook all the stupid things you want there!"

Slam.

"You've got to be kidding me," Jude sighed.

The whole room had just been doused with darkness as the latest boom of thunder took out the power. Jude's eyes were no where near adjusted, so she grabbed onto the first thing she saw, which happened to be Tommy. He moved from under her fingers and grabbed her arm, as well.

Suddenly, Jude started to softly giggle. Tommy looked at her like she was crazy, but soon, to Jude's surprise, he began to silently laugh too. Afterwards the pair could not contain their laughter. They laughed so hard Jude thought her sides were splitting and that Tommy was going to need to carry her out of here. Can you laugh forever? Sure feels like it to them.

"It's dark," Tommy said.

"Captain Obvious, what have you done with Tommy!?" Jude said with false worry.

Tommy sighed, "I'll get candles."

"Shouldn't you wait until you have a little more focus?" she questioned.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, "I have cat-like senses, like--"

Bam!

"Oww!" Tommy cried.

"Hey, Catman," Jude called. "There's a chair there."

"So I've realized," he called back.

Tommy later returned with a box of candles and a few matches in his hand. For now, the only light illuminating them was the occasional flashes from the lightning. Jude turned her attention to the windows where the heavy downpour of rain was taking its toll. She could smell the rain in the house, and she loved it. She had always loved the rain. As a little kid, she and her friends would play in the rain. When she got older, she loved to listen to the rain while she read, or slept. She loved it when it was dark outside and she could huddle up under her covers even if it was three o'clock outside.

Rain was the best.

For now, with Tommy, it made her feel at home. More comfortable. That even though she was in a different place, at a different time in her life, the rain would still fall. And finally, it wouldn't be a bad thing.

* * *

After saying goodnight and heading off to their beds, they awoke the next morning to find that it was still storming. Jude was ecstatic, while Tommy wasn't exactly what you would call happy.

"Why does is have to rain today?" he asked to no one in particular. "Today of all days?"

"Someones Oscar the grouch today," Jude said as she walked into the kitchen. Tommy had set out two cups of coffee for the two of them to have to start their day and Jude took hers gratefully. "Why so blue?"

"I had something planned for today," Tommy whined. "But I guess it can wait."

"Good!" Jude chimed, "Because I actually made plans for us already. And the weather doesn't matter this time."

"What is it?" he asked.

"Just get dressed, and meet me back in the kitchen in half an hour," she said. "I get to drive today."

Tommy complied and went to his room hesitantly, wondering what exactly could be in store for them.

* * *

After about an hours drive, they finally arrived at their destination. On the outside, it looked like a normal building, however, on the inside, there was so much more to be seen. Jude was sure Tommy would love it here. Especially after indulging in his new found love.

"What is this place?" Tommy asked.

"You just have to wait until we get inside," she explained. "I promise you won't be disappointed."

He followed reluctantly as Jude waltzed into the place. Inside were about thirty kitchen counters all equipped with everything you could ever need to cook. Mixers, knives, spoons, bowls, beaters, everything. Tommy stared in awe as his eyes roamed from side to side of the place, taking in everything.

"Since we're both not really good at cooking," Jude stated, "I thought we could take some cooking classes. That way, when I'm gone, you can use your pantry and your knowledge to make us dinner sometime when I come over."

Tommy turned to her immediately and wrapped his arms around her. He smiled into her hair as he whispered a sweet 'thank you.'

"You going soft on me, Quincy?" Jude questioned. He coughed shortly.

"No, never," he said, "come on, you know me, I'm a sucker for anything nice."

"Well, then I'm glad you like it," she replied. "You can thank me by cooking me dinner sometime, okay?"

"Deal," he agreed.

* * *

Their instructor was nice, however he had such a heavy French accent it was hard to understand him at all. When he would turn around, Tommy would constant poke fun at his curly mustache to Jude, who would laugh in return. She had to admit, being silly with Tommy was actually really fun. It was something she needed to let go of the pain the world has caused her these last few years. He made her feel like nothing else mattered in the world but having a good time. She was carefree and calm when they were together and she loved that he brought out that side in her.

When the class was over, Tommy spent his time in the car ride home speaking in a French accent to Jude.

"Jude, you need ta take dis vegitable yend cut eet lyke dis," he laughed.

"Mr. Quincy, eye beelieve eet es you dat needs ta get a life," she countered back.

As they drove home, they continued to take shots at one another in French accents, laughing away.

* * *

Tommy and Jude decided to stop at Blockbuster and rent the newest movie that had just came out. It was, 'The Dark Knight.' Jude however, had already seen the movie. Sadly, the midnight premiere more than took a toll on her body, and she fell asleep within the first 15 minutes. **(AUTHORS NOTE: I threw this in, because I totally fell asleep when I saw that movie in the midnight premiere, hah! It was amazing in the parts I saw, but I was so tired! I got yelled at a lot by my friends for missing the whole middle, ahah!) **Tommy had thrown such a fit when he realized what Jude had done that he made them stop at blockbuster to get it. But it seemed as if history repeats itself, because again, in the first 15 minutes, Jude was almost out.

"Come on, Jude!" Tommy pleaded. "Don't fall asleep yet, it's getting good."

Jude groaned. "You say that every five minutes. I'm tired. Can we wait to watch it?"

"Lets just watch a little bit more," he settled. Jude agreed reluctantly and leaned into Tommy as he watched the screen intently. Jude took her blanket she had wrapped around her and folded some of it over Tommy. The sound of the rain started again like a sound machine lifting her off to sleep. Soon, she gave in to her wishes while not long after, Tommy had fallen asleep too.

* * *

When Tommy awoke a few hours later in the night, he sat up to find something heavy on his lap. Sometime in the night, Jude must have repositioned herself to where she was lying on him, sweetly.

Tommy watched as she slept over him. He slowly pulled away the hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. Her frown line was gone, her face angelic. With sleep covering her features, she looked like a child. She looked so innocent and peaceful. Away from every bad thought in the world she had ever thought. Although, the two were just friends, he couldn't help but wonder what the future had in store. There was no way he was going to wake her. He drew small circles on the smooth surface her neck for what seemed like hours on end until he felt something.

Something abnormal and rigid. He softly moved her hair out of the way to take a closer look at what he saw. When it all came into focus, his stomach nearly dropped to the floor as his throat grew thick with a lump that he couldn't make go down. His heart ached.

Cigarette burns were scattered all along the back of her neck. Some old, some new. Bruises had claimed the entire right side of her and Tommy felt sick to his stomach. He gently pulled down the back of her shirt only to reveal many, many more bruises and burns that he had ever seen before. Rage coursed through Tommy's veins as he slowly began to reveal more and more.

That night he couldn't sleep. He barley could even blink. He started at Jude with all his might, trying to protect her from whatever it was that was hurting her. He felt disgust at any man who ever looked at her. He felt shame for not seeing this and helping her earlier. Obviously this had been going on for a long time, but he had been too ignorant to notice. The only men present in Jude's life were himself and her dad. Stuart. It was him. He was livid.

With the beams of sun throughout the still clouded sky, Jude awoke to a tense Tommy.

"Wow, I must have slept like a rock to not notice where I was," Jude laughed as she lifted her hair off of Tommy's lap and ran her fingers through her hair.

Tommy didn't reply. His jaw was rigidly set.

"Did Rachel Ray get canceled or something?" she joked.

Tommy once again didn't reply. Jude's expression turned grave, confused, and worried.

"Not funny. I get it," she said. "What's wrong?"

"You tell me," he said.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. "You're freaking me out."

For the first time that morning, Tommy looked in her eyes. She could see the flaming fire behind them and the hatred that consumed him right now. She became terrified. What had she done? What did she do to make him so mad? She didn't want to make anyone mad.

"What did I do?" she asked helplessly, tears beginning to brim her eyes.

Tommy's face softened. Of course, she's the one hurt and she thinks she's done something wrong to deserve this anger that he felt inside. He slowly took hold of her arm and lifted the sleeve.

One by one bruises were revealed. Jude gasped and swallowed. Somehow, she thought that she could fool him, but he apparently found out.

Tommy cradled her face and pressed her forehead into his own, he wrapped his arms around her, trying to shield her from any pain she had before these past couple days with him.

"Tell me what he does to you, Jude," he pleaded as his voice cracked. His heart lurched again as he saw the pain in her eyes re-visioned. "Just tell me so I can make him stop."

"Who, Tommy?" she questioned as the first tear took it's path down her cheek, "who?"

He clenched his fists. "Your father."

"Tommy," she began. She squeezed her eyes shut, allowing more tears to fall and tried to swallow again, her mouth dry. Then in a quiet voice, seeming to convince herself, she tried to reason, "he doesn't do anything to me."

That's when he became enraged. She was lying. She was lying to him. How can someone with physical evidence think they can lie about this. He stood up and kicked over the coffee table, scaring Jude. If it would have been one of those cartoons, his eyes would have been replaced with fire and steam would be coming out of his ears.

"Its right there on your fucking arm, Jude!" Tommy screamed. "You can't deny this!"

"He doesn't hurt me, he loves me," she said to more to herself than to him.

"Jude, I know it's him! You don't need to protect him!" he yelled.

"But it's not Tommy! It's not him!" she countered back, yelling at him for the first time.

"He's a sick man, Jude," he replied, disgusted. "Making you believe he's done nothing wrong. That's exactly what he wants you to think!"

Jude was about to intervene and defend him once again when there was a knock on the door. Both Tommy and Jude stood still, although it was harder for Tommy who was still shaking in rage. The looked at each other once again and then turned to get the door. Jude stood next to him, however, slightly behind, in case anything bad were to happen.

Tommy turned the handle of the door and opened it. Jude's eyes nearly bulged out of her head

Victoria Harrison appeared in the door way with a grim expression on her face.

"I've heard a rumor that my daughter is staying with you," she said, "and apparantely it's true. Come on, Jude, we're going home."

Victoria then took a long drag from the cigarette in her left hand.

* * *

**Teasers for the next chapter!**

* * *

_"After everything I've done for you, you're going to ruin it with someone who will trash you and use you?" she accused, "You want to throw that away?"_

_"The most you've ever done for me is put me through hell," Jude said quietly. "I lost myself, my heart, and I almost lost my life. He has been saving me, not you. So I think it's time that I return the favor to you for the first 17 years of my life."_

* * *

_"I was trying to protect you," he stated sadly. "But I messed this up, and I'm so, so sorry."_

* * *

**Questions!  
**

**1. Was the person causing Jude's pain, both physical and emotional, who you thought it was?**

**2. Does anyone know people personally who have been victims of violence? (It's a very tough subject and you don't have to answer this if you do not feel the need.)**

**3. Now, its too early to decide, but should Jude stay with Tommy, or get her own apartment for the time being, later on?**

**4. Who's excited for the holidays!?**

**xoxox**

**Emma :)**

* * *


	5. Quincy and Me

**Okay, you'll have to forgive me for being so easily frustrated and such a stubborn brat at some points, ha ha. I had written this whole thing out two days before Christmas and Christmas played a really big role in this, unfortunately, when I entered it into Fan fiction, it got deleted and my whole chapter went, 'bye-bye.' I was beyond furious because I had stayed up until two in the morning writing it. But, with the ideas fresh on my mind, I started again at two. Sadly then, my computer decided to turn off and all my work was gone two hours later. I really need to start saving the documents before I post them, Ha! Well, anyways, a month late, here it the next chapter! I already have most of the next one mapped out, I just need to get it reviewed so I don't have many mistakes. Now, Christmas and New Years are passed by quickly in this and now have very little to do, just in case anyone is sick of the holidays. **

**This chapter in the beginning is harsh and I didn't like writing it, but I loved putting in the next couple parts even though they are small. Look forward to having the next chapters be lighthearted togetherness! :)**

**Again, I'm so sorry if there are mistakes in this, again it's one in the morning on a school night... :( I hope there isn't any! Thanks again to everyone for reading my story, it really means a lot. **

Disclaimer: I do not own Instant Star no matter how much I beg and plead and scream and kick. I also do not own Rachel Ray, or the song, I Will Follow You Into the Dark by Death Cab for Cutie. (I love that song at the moment. Although it may have nothing to do with the story, I had to put it in! :)

* * *

Still standing in the doorway, Tommy turned to look at Jude. Her face was blank, her mind distant, and her eyes, broken. She was not the same Jude anymore. This was not the Jude that smiled and laughed, and made smart aleck remarks to him every five minutes. This Jude was not familiar.

His rage, instantly forgotten as he focused every bit of attention on Jude. He watched her change. At first, the blank stare seemed as if it were never going to leave her face, however, something in her changed. As she came out of her reverie, her eyes focused back on her mother. Anger, hurt, betrayal, and fear all mixed into one emotion she plastered on. He had never seen Jude so still in all the time he had known her. The reflection of Victoria danced in her expression as she watched.

Victoria slowly blew out the remaining smoke from her puff on her cigarette and stared impatiently. Her lips turning from a straight line, into a smug smile she said, "Well, aren't you going to let me into this pretty little house?"

Tommy had only seen her a few times around the studio and once when Sadie had invited him over for dinner, but he couldn't help but notice how immensely Victoria had changed. Her once bright face had succumbed to thick, deep lines around her mouth. She had purple bags under her eyes with deep ridges in them, like she hadn't slept in days. Her once healthy hair was now brittle and untamed, and the veins on her arms were now prominent. She looked like she had been to hell and back and Tommy was unsure a person could change so drastically in such a short amount of time. Her nails were bright red and her diamond jewelry hung loosely around her wrists. Someone had obviously been cashing in on Jude's fortune.

Jude still hadn't faltered. After what seemed like minutes, Victoria adjusted her bag on her shoulder and pushed past Jude in the open doorway to let herself inside. Her condescending eyes scanned over the house, taking note of every imperfection she saw.

She took a deep, exaggerated sigh, and spoke, still facing the other direction, "Jude, get your things."

Slowly, as he watched Victoria, out of the corner of his eye, Jude turned for the first time and headed in the direction of the guest room. Silently, Victoria took a seat on one of the couches.

Immediately, Tommy began to go after Jude. He ran down the hall and flew open the door and saw her frantically throwing things into the suitcase she had brought. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she hurried around the room. At first, Tommy watched, then swiftly his consciousness kicked back into place.

Tommy spoke up for the first time since yelling at Jude, "What are you doing?"

"What does is look like I'm doing, Tommy?" she said bitterly.

"You can't leave," Tommy felt like an idiot for having only that to say when Jude was about to be out the door with a person who sould be in jail.

"I can, and I am," she spat back.

"Jude, no," he tried desperately, "I won't let you."

Jude laughed sarcastically, "It's not your decision whether I stay or go."

Tommy raised his voice, "You're right. It's not mine, but it is yours. Jude, you don't have to listen to her, you don't have to go with her."

"She's my mother, Tommy," Jude replied.

"She's also abusive, twisted, and sick," with every word, Jude winced. "I'll say it again. I will not let you go with her."

Tommy paced towards the bed, where Jude's clothes were flying haphazardly and began putting them back into the drawers they belonged in.

Getting angry, Jude yelled, "Stop, Tommy! Knock it off."

He ignored her commands, however and began taking the clothes back and flinging them into the closet.

"Tommy, no," Jude yelled as she grabbed the latest handful Tommy had taken and tugged, "Give me my stuff back."

"No Jude, if this it what it takes to make you stay here, so help me god, I'm going to fight," he retorted.

Tommy yanked the clothes back, but a persistent Jude wouldn't budge. He then put both of his strong arms on Jude's frail ones, careful not to hurt her, but still forceful. He inched closer to her face.

"Jude, look in the mirror!" he yelled as Jude struggled to pull away. "Look at what is happening to you!"

He shook her as he spoke while she softly let out small sobs she had been holding in.

As Jude pulled, Tommy held tighter, and neither seemed to notice the figure step into the doorway.

"Is something wrong?" Victoria asked.

Jude froze and Tommy took his opportunity to take the clothes out of her hands and throw them in the drawers. Jude snapped and looked down. She began to quickly throw what was left on the bed into the suitcase and zipped it up when she was finished, wiping the stray tears from her eyes.

Victoria's crooked mouth curved up at the ends, and Tommy had the irresistible need to punch her. He figured if Jude wasn't going to do anything, he would.

"You're a sick woman, you know," Tommy said, the rage bubbling up again.

Victoria looked up at him, "Excuse me?"

"How could you do this?" he asked bitterly, "to your own daughter. What the hell does she do to you?"

"Mr. Quincy, I suggest you step out of the conversation before something goes wrong," she replied coolly.

"If you walk out that door, I'm calling the cops," Tommy threatened. "Hell, if you don't walk out the door I'm calling the cops."

Victoria laughed, "I wouldn't do that."

"Oh yeah," Tommy countered back, "and why is that?"

She took a step toward him and he could smell liquor on her breath. "Because you have no idea how badly I could ruin you."

Jude spoke up, "Tommy, don't." Her voice was small as she pleaded with him.

"You just wait until I tell everyone what a disgusting, vile person you are," he spoke coldly.

"You just wait until I tell everyone that you're with my daughter. Living together, for your age, isn't that illegal? Do you think the police would want to hear about you having sex with my teenage daughter?"

"You know that's not true," he said.

"The police don't," she smiled, "when a small, helpless mother comes in for the sake of her daughters safety, whose story do you think they will believe?"

She grabbed Jude's arm and started to pull her out of the room. Jude looked at Tommy helplessly. 'I'm sorry' she mouthed.

"Jude, do something," Tommy pleaded. "Be you. Be the Jude I know. Fight back."

She said nothing and continued walking.

"Fight back," he said again, begging. "Please."

Jude contemplated what he had said. She looked down, and looked over her shoulder at him. Suddenly, she stopped, causing her mother to be jerked back slightly.

She took hold of her arm again and pulled, "Jude, lets go."

Jude turned and looked up at Tommy, her frame fragile. She took a deep breath.

Still watching him for support, she turned to her mother and spoke up.

"No."

Victoria looked baffled. "Jude, we're leaving."

"No, you're leaving," she said coldly.

"What?" she asked incredulously.

"I said, you're leaving," she drew in a shaky breath and put on a determined face. "I will not come with you."

"Jude, you will," she commanded.

"No!" Jude yelled harshly. "I am not coming with you!"

"Jude, he is no good for you," she stated. "Three days gone and you're already in every news story possible. You got your chance to play house and now you're coming home."

"I am home," she replied.

"You've got to be kidding me, after less than a week, you simply cannot call this your home. That is both naive and childish," she retorted.

"Maybe not," Jude said, "But it has been more of a home than you have ever given us."

"You can't stay with him," Victoria commanded.

"I can, and I will," she repeated her words she had said to Tommy not three minutes before.

Jude slowly walked towards Victoria, causing her to back up, intimidated by the closeness she had with her daughter. Soon, they were by the door.

"After everything I've done for you, you're going to ruin it with someone who will trash you and use you?" she accused, "You want to throw that away?"

"The most you've ever done for me is put me through hell," Jude said quietly. "I lost myself, my heart, and I almost lost my life. He has been saving me, not you. So I think it's time that I return the favor to you for the first 17 years of my life."

With the final step, Victoria was out the door and Jude had shut the door in her face.

Tommy had been watching the scene unfold before him and felt pride knowing Jude had won. However, his pride and all happiness he felt towards the victory diminshed as he saw the fragile girl, who had just been so strong, collapse to the ground in front of the door in uncontrollable, frightening sobs.

For a minute, Jude saw black. Her world had gone dark and her head dizzy as she watched her mother's face when she closed the door on her. Suddenly, the events that had just taken place came crashing down, and she struggled for air. Her body shook and he knees gave out as she finally let the pain she had been avoiding for so long overcome her. Her hands covered her eyes and she did not once bother to think about Tommy still in the room when she broke down.

He took this chance to rush towards her and provide the only comfort he could at the moment. He sat next to her by the door and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as tightly as he could, afraid she might literally break apart.

* * *

When her cries had died down, Tommy had picked her up and carried her to the couch, where the both sat now, absentmindedly watching another program of Rachel Ray's holiday special. Neither of them had noticed, but Christmas was only days away, and the two had some planning, however now was simply not the time.

Jude sat silent, in her own world while Tommy was trying to keep his focus on his beloved Rachel Ray, and his broken Jude. When the program ended, Jude got up from her place on the couch and grabbed her jacket.

"Going somewhere?" Tommy asked.

"No," she stated simply. She then headed out the back door, into the grass where the swings were. Tommy soon picked up his jacked off the bar stool he had laid it on and followed her out. Not bothering to swing, Jude just sat on the swings and stared at the ground. Tommy took his place beside her.

They both sat again, in their own thoughts when Jude spoke up.

"You know when you said, 'Be you, be the Jude I know,'" she said. "When you said that, something inside me clicked. Everything was put into perspective. I was alone, terrified, and I was letting her drag me around. I wasn't standing up to anything, to anyone. That's when I realized. When I'm with you, I'm Jude. I can fight with you, and win." Tommy smirked when she said this, "I can be silly and funny and have a good time, all while staying me. I've spent my whole life trying to be someone that woman wanted me to be, and that doesn't feel good."

She laughed quietly.

"You thought you were the only one with family problems. I wanted to thank you for letting me be Jude, and for making me see that I am fine the way I am."

Tommy didn't say anything. He didn't know how. As soon as he mustered up something to say, she spoke again.

"You know how most beautiful, amazing musicians have a haunting past that forces their music to come out so heartbroken and deep. Well, you've just seen my inspiration. It isn't pretty. It normally never is, but I think over time I'll be able to tell you the whole story. Right now, I just want to be me and you. Jude and Tommy."

"Okay," was all he could say. He then looked up in the sky at the sun beams behind the darkness of the clouds and thought to himself about how greatly it reminded him of Jude.

* * *

"Do you know what I was thinking?" Jude asked.

"No," Tommy answered with a small smile on his face, while the fireplace roared beside him.

Jude smiled. "We need to get ready for Christmas."

Tommy looked apprehensive. "Jude, after what has happened today, I can't believe you're thinking about something else. I can't believe you're even thinking to tell you the truth."

Jude laughed lightly. "That's kind of what my brain or body does. This is going to sound weird, but my brain kind of, protects me in a way. Like, when I was little, I watched my dog get hit by a car. Because the experience was so traumatic, my brain has sort of blocked it out. When I found out that my dad had been married before he was married to my mom, I cannot even tell you how upset I was. But my brain pushed it away. I don't 'get over things.' I never have and I never will. I simply just don't think about them. So can you do me a favor for now and help me not think of it?"

"You're an alien, I swear," Tommy smiled.

"So I've been told," she replied. "So, about our tree--"

"Woah, woah, woah. A tree?" he asked. "Why do we need a tree?"

"Tommy, are you kidding?" she replied. "Everyone needs a tree. That way, Santa can put presents under it!" she stated sarcastically.

"Jude, I don't think that's such a g---"

"Stop right there," she commanded. "We're getting a tree and that's final. I can be in charge of decorating it, and you can be in charge of the Christmas cookies, Mr. Chef!"

"Yes, Sargent Jude!" he put a hand to his head and saluted her.

"You've had a tree before, haven't you?" Jude asked.

"Well, once, when I was on tour, we stashed one on our bus," he remembered and smiled, "we had gone to some national Christmas tree forest park thing, and cut one down with the tire saw we had found in the underbelly of the bus."

"Oh, yeah?" Jude said, "and what did the cops have to say about that?"

Tommy laughed. Soon the two grabbed their coats and headed to the Christmas tree farm.

Something in Jude's coat pocket vibrated through, and she knew she was getting a call. She picked it out and looked at the lit up screen.

_"Call From: Dad  
Received: 1:09 p.m, Sunday"_

Her stomach dropped. She heard Tommy yell, "Come on slow poke!"

"Just a minute!" she called back.

The phone beeped, indicating she missed the call and found a voice mail waiting for her. She clicked open the message and waited to listen to it. It was the frantic sound of her dad that alarmed her most.

"Jude, honey. I am so sorry. I can never make this up to you and I know you will probably never forgive me for what I have done. I was selfish and rude and I didn't listen to you. I just want you to know that I love you. I need you to call Jude, I have to speak with you. Please."

Jude heard him sigh from the phone.

"I was trying to protect you," he stated sadly. "But I messed this up, and I'm so, so sorry."

Then she heard the line click, knowing that's when he hung up. Jude was shaken and shocked. But, doing what she does best, she momentarily put it behind her and knew to bring it up again later to Tommy. For now, she put on a bright smile and followed Tommy out the door.

* * *

"You folks looking to get one of these here nine footers, or an eleven footer?" the owner asked.

"Honestly, I don't even ca-"

"We'll take a nine footer," Jude said politely after cutting Tommy off with a small hit in the chest.

"Okay, ya'll follow me and we'll get you started," he beckoned them with his hand while he trailed off down the path to the other trees.

The cool, brisk air whipped past Jude's face, causing her to begin to shiver uncontrollably. Tommy watched her and silently laughed to himself. He was cold, too, even though he was the one with the heavier jacket, so he couldn't imagine how cold Jude was. He pulled her arm closer to him and when she was within his reach, he wrapped an arm around her shivering body and held her close to try and produce warmth for the both of them.

It seemed to be working because almost instantly, Jude relaxed, leaned more into Tommy and wrapped her arms sideways around his waist.

The Tree Farm Owner, or whatever he is called, was blabbering on about the quality of trees until now and when he turned back to tell Jude and Tommy another fact, this time, his cold demeanor faded while he gave off a warm smile.

"You know, young love always gets to me," he said, "it just gives me hope in this world. You guys are newlyweds I take it?"

"No, actually we're--" Jude began but was cut off slowly by Tommy.

"Celebrating our anniversary," he finished for her. Jude looked up at him curiously. He nudged his head slightly motioning towards the man, indicating that he wanted Jude to play along. "Right, honey?"

"Yeah," she started hesitantly. "Five years and still going strong."

Tommy smiled. This seemed to go according to plan.

The man put a hand to his heart. "You guys just amaze me. I'll tell you what. If you guys tell your friends about my here farm, I'll give ya'll a discount, how's that?"

Jude looked at him increduously. "Wow, thats wonderful! Thank you so much!"

"Don't mention it," he said in return.

Tommy tightened his hold around her and whispered when the man turned around. "You hear that _babe_? Our love brings joy to his heart."

"Oh, I heard that _sweetheart_," she said putting emphasis on the nickname. "So, what'd you get me for our anniversary?"

* * *

Jude and Tommy had picked the tree they wanted, stopped at the store and picked out as many decorations as they could, and finally returned home to decorate the house. Christmas day came and went, each of them promising to not get one another a gift, but breaking the promise anyway with small but thoughtful presents. Jude bought Tommy Rachel Ray's signed book and DVD set and two concert tickets to Tommy's favorite band. Tommy told Jude to run to his room to find her present.

Eagerly, she ran to his room and looked it up and down, but found nothing. She looked around the bed, in the sheets, on the pillows, on his dresser, under the bed (which was a pigsty, by the way) and couldn't find anything.

She came back out to yell at him about how it wasn't there but stopped in her tracks once she came into view of the living room. Tommy had gotten a giant stuffed bear with a necklace around the neck and in it's hands was a brand new guitar. He caught her gaze fixated on the guitar.

"You know, so we can play together and write songs once we get back in the studio after the holidays," he said, as Jude looked at him with wide eyes.

She dove at him the first chance she got, wrapping her arms around his neck. She kissed the top of his forehead and then let go to see her other gift. The two hadn't shared a kiss since the first night she had stayed at his house and for now, were on mutual friend territory. Neither of them wanted to ruin that because they enjoyed each other's company too much for it to be complicated with a relationship. It wasn't hard to not think about being together, though sometimes on lonely nights, the thought would cross one of their minds.

Jude examined the necklace in her hands. It was just a key around a chain. "Tommy, I don't understand," she stated. "I have a key?"

"No, you had my key. This one is yours to keep, for you and you alone," He motioned to it, "take a closer look."

In plain sight, her name had been engraved into the side and small music note crystals were etched into the features as well. Silently, she stroked the key, taking it in her hands and holding it up to the light. It glistened and sparkled. To some it may seem like just a key, but this was a key to her home.

Her new home.

* * *

Before she knew it, Jude was packing up all the Christmas things and bringing out the New Year's champagne. The two toasted on New Years, deciding to stay in and watch Dick Clark's New Years Rockin' Eve, rather than head to G-Major's party on account of the past couple of weeks they both endured. They enjoyed this much better.

The two drank heaping amounts of alchohol unintentionally, thinking that the champangne Jude brought was just exceptionally good sparkling cider, and found each other staying up past the ball drop confessing their New Years resolutions and kissing briefly (and drunkenly) at the stroke of midnight. Jude had always wanted to go spend New Years in Time Square to watch the ball drop because it had always amazed her from when she was little until now. Tommy promised that he would take her to Time Square sometime. Little did he know, she intended to keep that promise.

Jude had three New Years resolutions. One was to focus more on song writing for herself than trying to write what the label wanted to hear. Two was to help Tommy decorate his own place and when the time came, to find her own place, though neither of them by now had any intention of looking in the ads for houses. And three, to finally be herself. To live without the constraints of anyone else and to be her own person.

Tommy's were, one, to produce the fastest selling album in the charts, two, to try and reconnect with his family so he can show them his new found cooking skills, and three, spend more time with the people he cares most about, unintentionally implying Jude.

Jude stood to get her new guitar when the two were finished confessing and play the first song of the New Year. First, she played Auld Land Syne, the official song of the New Year. Then she wanted to play the song that was most on her mind at the moment. She had heard it on the radio when she was shopping for Tommy's things and it had stuck with her since then. She couldn't get it out of her mind and finally she knew why.

As she started to think about the lyrics before she sung them, she knew that she would do anything for Tommy if he asked, and even if he didn't ask. If he just needed help, she would be there, like he was for her. They both knew that subconsciously, at the drop of a hat, the two would do anything for each other. Though they weren't going to die anytime soon, this song had meaning.

Jude picked up the pick and set the guitar on her lap. She on the floor in front of the TV with her back propped up with the couch. Tommy, still a little intoxicated, took a pillow and layed it on Jude's legs and rested his head. Smiling contently, he encouraged her to play.

_"Love of mine some day you will die  
But I'll be close behind  
I'll follow you into the dark_

_No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white  
Just our hands clasped so tight  
Waiting for the hint of a spark  
If Heaven and Hell decide  
That they both are satisfied  
Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs_

_If there's no one beside you  
When your soul embarks  
Then I'll follow you into the dark"_

She continued through the verses and the chorus that followed and stopped playing her guitar and quietly sang to a droopy eyed Tommy.

_"You and me have seen everything to see  
From Bangkok to Calgary  
And the soles of your shoes are all worn down  
The time for sleep is now  
It's nothing to cry about  
'cause we'll hold each other soon  
In the blackest of rooms_

_If Heaven and Hell decide  
That they both are satisfied  
Illuminate the No's on their vacancy signs_

_If there's no one beside you  
When your soul embarks  
Then I'll follow you into the dark  
Then I'll follow you into the dark"_

She quietly set her guitar down as she sang the last line and her eyes drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

"I'll follow you into the dark."

* * *

**Teasers for the next chapter!**

* * *

_"This is your idea of fun!? You and I have very different definitions for the word "fun." Maybe you mixed this up with the word torture. Don't worry, I get those confused sometimes, too."_

_"Just shut up and keep walking, Harrison!"_

* * *

_"I got a message from my dad before Christmas, and I kinda forgot about it until now," she admitted sheepishly._

_"What are you going to do about it?" he asked, his gaze wandering off._

_"I have no idea," she stated sadly._

* * *

_"You want to go to a gay bar?"_

_"What!?"_

_"That's not a no!"_

* * *

**Question time!  
**

**1. Does anyone even answer these? Ha ha.. just wondering, and thank you to everyone who does! :)**

**2. What did you get for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, etc.?**

**3. New Years resolutions, anyone?**

**4. I was thinking, should Tommy's family play a part in this or no?**

**I wanted to say thank you so much to everyone who reviews my story. You guys are amazing. I loved reading each and every one of your reviews all the time to my friends and family and this time, I'm going to try to write everyone back! Hah! I hope you all are doing well. **

**xoxo**

**Emma! :)**


	6. March of The Popstar

**Holy crap. Someone needs to invent some kind of "e-slap" so that when I'm not posting new chapters, you guys can just slap me through the computer. Wow, I'm really sorry. Haha, I've just been so lazy. I had even mapped out this whole chapter and was just too lazy to write it. It was always one of those, I'll do it later.. And I never did. Until now. I really hope you guys like this chapter even though it's kind of short. **

**I guess when I promise I'm going to post, I never do. Hah. So this time, I make no promises, I just hope I can post on time. :)**

**I own nothing but my imagination.**

* * *

Jude awoke the next morning to a pulsing headache and the sound of her cell phone ringing on the table across from where she was lying. She groaned and tried to ignore it by turning her head in the other direction and holding the red blanket up to her ears, but after a few seconds of the loud music she had for a ring tone, she figured she should just pick it up.

She opened her eyes and winced at the brightness of the light. The curtains had been left open from the night before and the sun beams angrily sought out her eyes to stare at her, forcing her to wake up. Her phone stopped ringing. Too late.

Sighing, she decided it was time to wake up anyway. She tried to lift herself off the couch, but felt pressure on the small of her back keeping her from moving. She looked down at the sleeping figure she was entangled and smiled. Tommy's eyes were closed and his face was innocent. His breath was at a steady pace. Jude propped up her arms on either side of his head and looked around.

Empty champagne bottles had been strewn across the floor while noise makers and party hats from their own little party were all bunched up together on the coffee table. Her guitar was turned on it's side and the TV still held a faint glow. The New Years eve parade was on, but the volume was put on mute earlier in the night when the two had begun talking.

The window was open and she felt the cool breeze coming from it, billowing the curtains and the papers on the table. The room was cold, but Jude was warm. She and Tommy were wrapped under a red blanket on the couch. Somehow, during the night, one of them must have followed the other onto the couch because the last Jude could comprehend, she and Tommy were on the floor. She smiled to herself for the second time that morning. Looking at the clock on her phone, she realized it was only seven thirty and the two could use a couple more hours of sleep.

She gently laid her head back down on Tommy's chest and brought the blanket up to cover them both again. Tilting her head up to Tommy's she pressed a sweet kiss to his cheek and nestled into the crook of his neck. Subconsiously, Tommy tightened his grip around her waist. Jude smiled softly and soon drifted off back to sleep.

* * *

When Jude awoke again, two hours later, it was to the sound of banging pots and muffled swearing. Her head still throbbed, though this time, she felt better than she did earlier. She shivered and soon realized that her warm companion was gone.

"Tommy?" Jude called into the openness of the house.

The rustling in the kitchen stopped and soon Tommy arrived in the doorway.

Tommy playfully smiled and bowed to her. "You beckoned, my lady?"

"Your lady needs some coffee," she replied, smiling back.

Tommy motioned to the kitchen, "Already started."

Jude found no need to try and get up. She just stretched out her arms helplessly. "Carry me."

Tommy looked at her curiously. Seeing that she was serious he grinned, went to her and picked her up from her place on the couch.

"Where to, Princess?" he asked as he started towards the kitchen.

"To the food chamber," she commanded playfully. "Away now young servant!"

Tommy laughed, "Young? Are you sure you know me?"

He set her down gently on the bar stool and turned her around so her back was to the counter. He leaned towards her as she leaned back. Soon, her back hit the counter and he placed two of his hands on either side of her. He came towards her until he was about an inch from her face, the closeness making Jude's breath hitch in her throat.

"What do you wanna do today?" he asked suggestively.

Jude started at him with wide eyes. "What?"

Tommy's eyes glistened, "I was thinking..." he explained as he traced her arm. "We should..."

Jude held onto every word Tommy said until he pulled back with a smirk on his face.

"Go back to the studio when the holiday is over."

That jerk had just played with her for fun.

"What the hell was that all about?" Jude asked shocked and still reeling.

Tommy tried to look innocent, "What?"

"The touching, and the- you and me- so close.." she grasped at words in her mind and nothing seemed to be coming out right. Tommy just sat back and laughed.

"Just glad to know I have superiority, that's all," he said.

Jude's confusion immediately wiped off her face and a look of mischief washed onto her features. Tommy suddenly became nervous. Then the mischief was replaced by a normal Jude look.

"Okay, if you want to go into the stuido," she began. "We'll go. But not today. I want to be totally free for one more day."

"I couldn't agree with you more," Tommy said. "Look, there is something I wanted to show you. I was going to take you on the day we had cooking class but it was raining, and now I feel like it's a good time to go, plus the view is better than music itself."

"You want to go to a gay bar, huh?" she laughed.

"What!?" he looked at her, his eyes bulging out of his head.

"That's not a no!" she smiled as she jumped up to run into the bathroom. Because of the drunken New Years Eve they had last night, she hadn't changed from her clothes from the night before. Come to think of it, she hadn't showered either.

Tommy followed which soon made Jude notice and turn to him.

"Going somewhere?" she asked.

"What, you're not going to let me in with you?" he smiled suggestively.

Jude's eyes grew wide as she watched him and drew in a sharp breath, "What?"

"Chill, Harrison," he laughed. "I'm just getting a towel."

She slowly regained mobility of her legs as she continued her way to the bathroom. Tommy reached for a towel out of the bottom cabinet and began to leave, but stopped to smack Jude's butt.

"Save some hot water for me," he said as he left.

Now it was war.

* * *

Jude was finished with her shower about the same time Tommy was, so she figured it would be the perfect time to get him back.

She sauntered out of the bathroom in the shortest towel she could find towards Tommy's room. However, in the time it took for her to reach his door, she didn't exactly think of anything to say. She lifted her hand and knocked on the door. It swiftly opened and Tommy appeared fully dressed. His eyes bulged when he saw her skimpy towel trying so hard to cover her up but failing miserably.

His eyes scanned her body what seemed like a thousand times when finally he took a deep breath and crashed his lips onto hers. Hungrily, he took Jude by the wrists and pushed her up against the hallway wall.

Almost immediately, Jude grew weak at the knees. She thanked God that Tommy was holding her wrists or else she would have tumbled to the ground the minute he came in contact with her. His kisses were rough and wanting but she could feel her towel slipping and knew it was time to stop. His hands cupped her face as he continued to kiss her. With all her might, she willed herself to stop and gently pushed Tommy away.

Panting hard, they looked at each other with dark, lustful eyes. Jude's overwhelmed expression was soon over took with a smirk. She leaned close to Tommy's face and whispered.

"I win."

And with that, she walked back to her room to get dressed, leaving a shocked, breathless Tommy in the hallway.

* * *

After the incident in the morning, the two took some time in their rooms as they prepared for the rest of the day. Tommy apparently had something for them to do and needless to say, Jude was kind of excited. She had been off in her own reverie when Tommy came and knocked on her open door.

"You ready for our adventure?" he asked, smiling.

"Okay, Indiana Jones, where are we going?" she countered back.

Tommy shook his head. "Nope, I'm not gonna tell you until we get there."

Jude sighed. "When we get there, I'll already know so there will be no need to tell me."

Tommy furrowed his brow. "Good point. Then I guess I'm never going to tell you."

"I swear, if we're going white water rafting in minus two degree weather I will literally cut your balls off," she said, playfully.

"Ouch!" Tommy cringed. "Didn't need to know that."

"Just thought you should know."

Tommy walked out and Jude followed. They both hopped into Tommy's car and started off. For most of the way, Jude was silent, trying to figure out exactly where they were going. The ride was long, but comfortable. When they were within two miles of the place, Tommy turned to Jude.

"You know, what you're wearing now isn't exactly going to work well with what we're doing today," he said.

"Well, if I would have known, I would have worn something that suited where we were going," she replied.

"Fair enough," he said. "Which is why I packed you some things. They're in the back seat."

Jude looked into the back seat to find a large, winter coat waiting for her, along with boots, gloves, and a scarf.

"Are you going to leave me out in the cold or something?" she asked.

"Look again," he instructed.

She turned around again and saw that to the right of her things, Tommy's winter gear was placed on the other seat, along with a large bag.

Jude turned back to Tommy. "What's in the bag?"

"You'll figure that out soon enough," he replied.

"Well, aren't you just the man of mystery today," she laughed.

"I'd like to think that," he smiled. "But I have to say, I'm going to get you back for that little stunt you pulled on me this morning."

"Stunt I pulled?" she laughed. "I should be talking to you about controlling yourself in front of a girl with a towel on. I do remember that I won this time, what's to say I won't do it again."

"Oh, it won't be a question of what you do," he told her suggestively.

"Okay, this is so not in _friend_ territory," Jude said.

"You're right," he said. "Someday we're going to have to change that."

Jude smiled. "Someday."

Soon they were at their destination. Jude looked out the front window to a large mountain staring back at her.

"Oh no," she said.

"Oh yes," he said back.

* * *

"Tommy, how much longer?" Jude wined. "My toes are frozen."

"Jude, why don't you just look yourself," he told her. "How far away are we from the top?"

"Millions and millions of miles," she wined again.

Tommy laughed, "Come on you big baby, we're like five minutes from the top."

"That's like five minutes too many," Jude panted.

Tommy had made the two of them get dressed in their gear and literally climb the snowy mountain. It had taken a while in minus two degree weather so saying Jude was grouchy was an understatement.

Jude huffed and puffed up the mountain while Tommy was a natural, seeing as he had climbed the mountain many times before on his own.

"So glad you got to choose the activity for today," she muttered sarcastically.

"Come on, this is fun," he replied.

"This is your idea of fun!? You and I have very different definitions for the word "fun." Maybe you mixed this up with the word torture. Don't worry, I get those confused sometimes, too."

"Just shut up and keep walking, Harrison!"

She started to trail behind, unwilling to go any faster.

"Hurry up!" he said.

"Slow down!" she countered back.

Sighing, he stopped in his tracks and waited for her to catch up with him. Soon, he took her hand and helped her up the rest of the way.

When they reached the top, Jude's aggravation with Tommy melted away. the view was beautiful. You could see, not only the whole city, but mountains and trees and clouds and sky and snow and everything! You could see for miles and miles around. The climb was completely worth it, Jude thought, because now they could enjoy this together.

"It's beautiful," Jude said breathless.

"I'm glad you like it," Tommy replied. "But this isn't exactly what I brought you here to see."

"Tommy, what's better than this?" Jude asked, still looking around, amazed.

Tommy laughed, "Come on, come with me."

He held out his hand and once again, she took it letting him guide the way as she trailed happily behind.

As soon as they passed the many trees that were in the way, Jude stopped right in her tracks and gasped.

Behind the shadows of the trees she could see a small pond, frozen over. The water was sparkling blue, showing signs that no other human had ever touched it this winter. The ice was smooth and appeared glassy, reflecting the sky in colors of blue, green, and violet. All around were pine trees and scattered pine cones, frosted perfectly as if they were painted.

"Oh my god," Jude whispered.

Tommy squeezed her hand and shrugged off the bag on his shoulder.

"You want to see what's in the bag now?" he asked.

Jude nodded as he pulled out two pairs of ice skates, one for him and one for her. He gestured to the pond and spoke up again.

"Would you like to skate with me?" he asked.

"Sure," she smiled.

He handed her the skates as she took off her boots and began to put his on, as well.

"How did you know about this place?" she questioned.

"I've known about it all my life," he answered. "My dad used to bring me and my family up here in the winter time to skate. It was my favorite place in the world. After all the celebrity happened with Boys Attack I stopped having time to come here with them, so they stopped coming, too. I haven't been back here since I was sixteen."

He sighed as he continued to lace up his skates.

"Why come here now?" she asked again.

Tommy smiled. "That answer is kind of funny. Until you moved in my house, I was an adult. I was a serious business man who just got to be silly with you in the studio. I was funny Tommy Q at work, but when I got home it was bills, TV, and takeout. Then you came along. You had a pillow fight with me, messed up the kitchen with me, taught me how to cook, taught me how to listen, taught me how to be a kid again."

He was silent for a while until he started up again.

"I really missed this place. I wanted to show this to you as a thank you for helping me see that I grew up way too fast. I wanted to show you everything that made me a kid, because I know all you see is the producer side of me. You showed me your vulnerable side with your mom, and now I'm showing you mine."

He lifted himself up off the ground and dusted himself off, holding out his hands to help her up.

"So what do you say?" he smiled.

"I say, that's amazing," she smiled back at him and took his hands. Suddenly, her expression became uneasy. "Okay, I have a confession to make."

"What is it?" Tommy asked.

"I don't know how to skate," she admitted sheepishly.

"What!?" Tommy asked incredulously.

"Yeah, and you're talking about your missed childhood," she laughed.

"Wow," he said. "Well, I'm just going to have to teach you."

He slowly pulled her out onto the ice, steadily. She was shaky at first, but with Tommy's help, she could at least stand.

"Don't let me fall," she told him.

"And not let you fall through the ice?" he asked sarcastically. "I wouldn't miss that for the world."

"I'm serious," she growled. "I'm putting all my trust in you and you better not let me fall into that water or I'm going to do what I said I would do earlier."

"You mean chop of my balls?" he laughed.

"Exactly," she said. "Don't let me fall."

He pulled her farther out onto the ice.

"Are you sure this won't crack beneath us?" she asked, looking down at the ice.

"Stop worrying, Harrison," he said. "I've got you."

"Don't let me fall," she commanded again.

"I won't," he replied.

He started to pull her around the ice slowly. It was smooth so he could easily glide around without resistance. She gripped his arms tightly as he skated them across the pond. After a while, Jude relaxed in his arms and began to get the hang of it.

"Speaking of family," she started. "I got a message from my dad before Christmas, and I kinda forgot about it until now," she admitted sheepishly.

"What did he say?" he asked.

"I don't know," she admitted as she looked down again. "I'm kind of too afraid to listen to it."

Tommy smiled softly and reached his hand under her chin to make her eyes meet his.

"I'll listen to it with you if you want me to," he offered.

"Tomorrow," she suggested.

"What are you going to do about it?" he asked, his gaze wandering off.

"I have no idea," she stated sadly.

"You know," Tommy began, changing the subject. "You haven't told me to not let you fall for a while now."

Jude looked up at him. "It's because I know you won't let me"

Tommy smiled back as the two spun around, gliding without a care in the world.

* * *

**Teasers for the next chapter.**

* * *

_"You ready?" he asked her._

_"No," she admitted._

_"I"m right here, you don't need to worry," he reassured her._

_"Hold my hand," she said._

_

* * *

_

"Will you come with me if I decide to go?" she asked.

"Only if you want me to," he replied.

"Always."

* * *

**Question time! :)**

**1. What is the best movie you've seen so far of 2009?**

**2. I can't think of a question so, Ice Cream or Popsicles?**

**3. How was your Valentine's day? 3**

**Sorry those are such crap questions.. Hah! I can't think of any right now! I'm running on like two hours of sleep and I'm distracted from watching The Girls Next Door. Haha. Again, thank you guys so much for reading and reviewing my story, it really means a lot. Hope you guys are doing awesome! :) Next chapter up soon! ... Wait, was that a promise? Uh oh.. Looks like it's never getting posted.. haha.**

**xoxo **

**Emma! :)**


	7. Decisions

**Wow you guys! I cannot even tell you how sorry I am for being so stubborn and lazy!! The truth is, I had about 3 chapters that I was reading over to post then one day, I was walking to my room, my computer in hand, and dropped it. Can you believe that? I dropped my computer! My hard drive broke and my computer crashed. Everything was gone. I'm not just talking about my story, but every single document, picture, video, and music file. I was so upset. I had to pull out hundreds of dollars of my savings to buy another one. By that time, I was so mad that everything had gone that instead of putting it all back piece by piece, I didn't even touch anything. I used the internet, that's all. Finally, I was feeling bad that I had gone so long without writing but I got a reminder from ShadyLady21, ****, and I finally decided to start writing again. The truth is, I'm actually nervous to start again thinking that maybe the coming chapters won't be as good as what I've written so far, but I'm throwing caution to the wind (who says that anymore? Well it's coming back!) and writing. So here it goes.**

**Thanks for sticking by me even though I'm such a snoozer. **

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Tommy stood, cup of tea in hand, braced for the impact of knocking on Jude's door in ungodly hours of the morning. Well, not exactly ungodly. It was about eight thirty but for the last couple of weeks, the two hadn't seen anything even close to eight. Let alone nine, ten, or eleven. Yet, here he stood, ready to defend himself from any foreign objects she could get her hands to throw at him.

He knocked gently on the door almost subconsciously hoping the softer the sound, the nicer Jude would be. The plan didn't seem to work.

"Go away." Jude yelled, muffled slightly by her pillow. Tommy knew it was going to be hard getting her up. Man, he even had trouble not pressing snooze on the alarm for the tenth time this morning.

"Jude," he started softly, "can I come in?"

"No." Jude said simply.

Tommy sucked in a breath and opened the door anyways. He held out the tea far in front of him and used his free hand to protect his face. Her room was dark and he was worried that one misstep over her clothes would send him flying into her dresser or back out into the hallway. Surprisingly, her room was neat. Not much was out of its place, let alone a few pairs of earrings on her dresser and a sock here and there.

It looked like the room of someone who lived here for a long time. Worn in and warm.

"Tommy, go away!" Jude groaned. She tried to block out the light coming from the hallway with her hand but, seeing as that was a failure, she turned over, facing the window.

Tommy, like any parent would do, set her tea on the dresser and swung open the curtains, the bright light streaming in on Jude's face.

"Asshole." Jude murmured, pulling the covers over her head.

Tommy smirked, "Good morning to you too, Princess."

"That's Queen Jude to you, sir," she responded as an attempt to be playful even under the haze of sleep she was under.

Tommy, completely over his fear of disturbing her, ripped the covers off of her bed. Jude stiffened.

"Tommy, if you want to keep living, get out," Jude threatened. "I mean it."

He laughed. "Come on, Jude. If I can get up this early, so can you. We made a deal. We promised we'd be back in the studio and today's the day."

"I don't want to go," she said into her pillow.

"Me neither," he replied. "But if you and I want to keep out jobs, you better start hauling your butt to the shower or whatever you do in the morning. Do your little voodoo magic and get ready."

Jude looked up at Tommy and frowned but quickly turned back into her pillow, smiling.

"I saw that," Tommy smiled. He walked up to the side of her bed. In a split second, he picked Jude up and threw her over his shoulder. She screamed.

"Tommy! Put me down!" she kicked her legs and beat down on his back, but his grip never faltered.

"You promise to get ready?" He asked. "Now?"

Jude's flailing stopped. "Fine." She huffed.

He set her down on the padded carpet and watched her grab her things and walk defeated to the bathroom. His phone beeped. He took it out of his pocket and looked at the lit-up screen. Darius.

Tommy sighed. "Jude, you better cut that three hours you planned to take into one. Darius wants us soon."

"Okay," she called from the bathroom.

"What?" he asked, surprised. "Okay? As in, you'll do it?"

Jude peeked her head out of the bathroom, confused. "Yeah? Why wouldn't I?"

Tommy smiled. "Because that's not the Jude I know."

"Shut up," Jude scowled.

"There she is," Tommy laughed.

* * *

Sure enough, an hour later the two were out the door and into Tommy's car. Jude was fixing her eyeliner in the car mirror and Tommy was messing with the radio dials.

"See, this is why I hate the radio," he frowned. "Nothing is on. Ever."

Jude smirked at him. "Hey, I'm on the radio. Watch it."

"Yeah, but I listen to you every day of the week," Tommy smiled. "Talk about torture."

Jude punched his arm. "You jerk!"

Tommy laughed. "I was kidding and you know it. Be careful, Sammy Sosa. You've got quite the arm. I hope tonight I still have one."

He rubbed his arm over dramatically in the place she had punched him which made her roll her eyes.

"You big baby," she teased.

"As long as I'm your big baby," he teased back, smirking.

* * *

As he pulled into a parking space he remembered the story he had to tell Darius to get him to let them off for so long. He had completely forgotten to fill Jude in. Jude's phone beeped.

"It's Darius," she said as she glanced down at her screen. "Let's get in there."

She opened the car door and started walking towards the entrance, but Tommy tried to stop her.

"Wait!" he yelled.

"Tommy, no time to talk," she replied. "He needs us in there."

She walked into the lobby, home away from home, Tommy trailing her.

"But there's something I need to tell you!" he yelled again. Just then, a flash of blonde hair appeared out of his peripheral vision.

"Jude!" Sadie screamed from behind her desk.

"Here we go," he said to himself as he entered behind Jude. He sucked in a breath and braced for what would happen next.

Sadie ran towards Jude and engulfed her in a suffocating hug, smiling brightly. She pulled back and held her at arms length by the shoulders.

"Tell me all about your trip to Africa!" she squealed.

"Excuse me?" Jude asked puzzled.

"Actually, Sadie," Tommy started. "Darius needs us right now, but I'm sure Jude would love to tell you as soon as she gets the chance. Let's go, Jude."

Jude, still confused, walked backwards with him, staring at Sadie. Tommy took her by the arm and began dragging her into the studio, ready to answer any questions that were about to be thrown at him.

"Africa!" she hissed as soon as Sadie was out of hearing range. "What the hell was I doing in Africa?"

"Visiting your friend who was sick," Tommy whispered back. "I wasn't exactly going to tell Sadie you weren't answering her phone calls because you were too busy shacked up with me!"

"But why Africa?" she asked again. "Why not Arizona?"

Tommy sighed. "I don't know! It's the only thing that came to my mind. I'm sorry, okay?"

The pair walked up the steps to Darius' office and knocked on the door.

"You better think of something for me to say or I'm sending you on a plane to Africa," she threatened.

"Sadie, this had better be important because I'm in another meeting about Jude's whole deal," he replied from the other side. Tommy pushed open the door. Darius looked up from his desk and smiled.

"Oh, Jude! Tom! There you two are! Ready to be back in action?" he asked, smiling his "Darius" smile.

"You bet," Tommy replied. "But what do you mean by Jude's "whole deal?" We're not losing our job are we?"

Darius laughed. "Not even close. You guys wait in Studio A while I finish this meeting. I'll be there in a bit to talk to you about something exciting."

"Can't wait," Jude said as Tommy closed the door.

* * *

Two hours later Darius was standing outside Studio A expecting to hear Jude behind the microphone and Tommy behind the controls, barking orders at her. Instead, he found the two sitting on the ground with their backs to the door. He pressed his ear to the crack to try and listen into their conversation.

"You ready?" he asked her.

"No," she admitted.

"I'm right here, you don't need to worry," he reassured her.

"Hold my hand," she said.

"Jude, come on," he replied. "You can do this."

"But what if something goes wrong?" she asked.

"Then we start again," he answered. "No big deal."

"You promise you won't get mad at me?" she asked again.

"No way, no how," he said.

Darius was more than curious by this time so he pushed open the door and walked around the room. Both of them were huddled around a small game of Jenga, the tower as high as Jude's head. She was reaching for a brick when Darius spoke up.

"What are you doing?" he asked. Jude screamed and jumped, her hand crashing into the tower, causing it to topple helplessly to the ground.

"You ruined it!" Tommy screamed.

Jude frowned. "You said you wouldn't get mad at me!"

"That was then!" he replied. "Before I knew you were going to smash it to smithereens!"

"It's not my fault!" she yelled back. "It's his!"

Jude jabbed a finger in Darius's direction and for the first time, they noticed he was there.

"Oh, Darius!" Tommy said, jumping up and dusting himself off. "Sorry, we were just—"

"Just getting back to work," Darius answered for him, his voice stern. Then, however, he smiled. "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to play as many games as you want after I tell you this."

Jude was silently putting the tower back together again when Tommy tapped her on the arm with his foot. He held out a hand for her and helped her off the ground. As soon as Jude was up, she leaned subconsciously into Tommy's body. The two didn't seem to notice but Darius sure did.

"Mind telling me what's going on between you two?" he asked.

Jude and Tommy looked at each other, puzzled. "Nothing?" Tommy answered for them.

"Uh huh," Darius replied, making a note to bring it up later. "Sure. Anyways, you both are going to want to sit down for this."

Jude looked around and found two stools for them to sit on. She handed one to Tommy and placed the other in front of Darius.

"Okay, what's going on?" she asked. "This is getting weird."

Darius steadied himself and then took at seat in the chair closet to him. He held out two hands in front of him, his pointer-fingers and thumbs touching the opposite, making a box.

"Picture this," he began, "while you were away, I got calls from different reps for music labels from France, England, Italy, Spain, Australia, Greece, you name it, I got a call from it. G-Major is thinking of expanding our venues to reach global success."

He rubbed his hands together and leaned back in his chair. "We would expand into at least twelve different countries in four different continents. Starting in two weeks, select members of G-Major's staff are going to head around the world to oversee some of these projects. Tom, since you are my right-hand man, I'm going to need you to head out as soon as you can."

Tommy started, "But what about –"

Darius laughed, "Let me finish. I knew you were going to want to take Jude, and since she's going to be recording her fourth album pretty soon, I figured what better time to start. All the downtime on the jets will give you a chance to write and once you hit up the studios, you can record. We can pitch it as, 'Jude's Global Tour.' Just think about how huge you'll become, Jude."

At first, she didn't know what to think. She watched Darius' eyes turn from excitement into dollar signs in a matter of seconds. Regardless, this seemed surreal. She could feel her breath becoming shorter and glanced at Tommy.

"What's the catch?" she asked, turning to Darius.

"So far, there is none," he answered. "Basically you're becoming my guinea pig for the next 5 months. We're sending you two out to see how it goes. The more you record and the more feedback we receive, the more artists and producers we'll have out there. You won't need to worry about studio space, seeing as many of the local studios are lending out their equipment and space for some recognition. If you say yes, I write the check today and you two are off."

Tommy sucked in a breath, "You want us to decide today?"

"Where would we stay?" Jude asked. "Who would we talk to?"

Darius straightened up. "All of that will be taken care of. Come on, you two are my best. Do you really think I'd send you out there without anything?"

Jude and Tommy glanced at each other, still in a state of shock. Darius, seeing as it this would go no further today rose up out of his chair.

"You have until tomorrow morning to decide," he said. "I need to start putting some zeroes on the checks to get everything set in. If you decide later today, head to my office and you'll sign the papers. You'd have two weeks to pack. We'll send you with money and whatever you don't bring, you can always buy."

Still, the duo sat still, staring.

"As far as you're concerned," Darius spoke again, "you two are done for the day. Head home, think about it, take some time to relax. Let me know as soon as possible."

He straightened his blazer and tie and walked out of the room. They sat there for a second, not being the first one to speak up. Darius had just dropped a bombshell on them and he was just going to leave the room? Jude glanced at Tommy from the corner of her eye. He was still sitting as motionless as she was.

Jude spoke up, "Can you believe this?"

Tommy shook his head, not saying anything, staring at the wall in front of him. She waved her hand in front of his face and then laid her hand on his cheek. The color had drained from his face.

"You okay?" she asked.

Tommy nodded and began to talk, "Do you know what this means?"

She tilted her head with interest. "Want to tell me what's going through your head right now?"

He looked up at her. "This is a once in a lifetime chance, do you not understand that?"

"Of course I understand that," she began. "but didn't you already do something like this with Boyz Attack?"

Tommy laughed and for the first time in ten minutes, began to show emotion. "In a way, yes we did. But I never got to really experience it, if you know what I mean. I was sixteen and had the world, and plenty of alcohol, at my feet. I wasn't even sobered up to remember half of the things we did. I didn't even know we were in some countries until we came back."

Jude thought for a minute. In the split second she glanced at Tommy, she could see excitement on his features. His eyes were lit up, almost imagining himself in those countries with Jude, his best friend. She wanted to say yes even before she saw him, but now, she felt like she needed to say yes. To give Tommy a second chance on something he wanted.

It was one of the only times in her life where she thought about someone other than herself about something this drastic. She needed to give him this opportunity back. She wanted to go with him, to be there with him. They could do it. All they needed to do was pack up their house and head out. All Darius needed was an answer, so Jude spoke up.

"Will you come with me if I decide to go?" she asked.

"Only if you want me to," he replied.

"Always."

And with that, their decision had been made.

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**Teasers for the next chapter.**

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_"There is no one in the world I would rather go with than you, Jude," he said. _

_Jude smiled playfully. "If you say so."_

_Tommy took her hand. "I mean it."_

* * *

_"You, me, and that stack of cards. We're doing this."_

_"Winner gets to pick the person the other one has to hit on."_

_"What, are we in 5th grade?" _

_"Worried you'll get your butt kicked?"_

_"Give me those cards."_

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Questions!

1.) What has everyone been up to lately!?

2.) What movie of 2010 are you most excited to see?

3.) Which place in the world would you most like to visit and why?

Okay! First off, I just wanted to say, thank you so much to everyone who reviews and tries to put me back into the writing mood. I'm truly sorry I'm such a lazy bum sometimes. Haha. I know this chapter was boring, but I have to get ready to set up for the next chapters which will be a lot better, I promise. :)

AND, I was thinking, that maybe on the next chapter, leave a review of your name and a short description of yourself and the country you'd most like to visit, (i.e. I'm Emma and I have wavy, reddish-brown hair and I love to sing. I'm Italian, so I pick Italy) and Jude and Tommy may run into you on their way around. :) I know that sounds pretty cheesy, but it'll be fun. But remember, not this chapter. On the next one. Be sude to read these notes at the bottom to see if anything has changed.

Thanks so much you guys, again. It really means so much. 3

xoxo

Emma :)


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